How to live lean: London's leading PT on how he trains his model clientele

The Bulgari in London is not only home to a truly decadent spa, complete with a jaw-dropping private pool complex, but the most non-hotel hotel gym. A fixture throughout the luxury chain, the Workshop Gymnasium is the Bulgari’s signature fitness method, that while undeniably premiere, remains pleasingly unpretentious. Founded by leading personal trainer Lee Mullins, the approach begins with a unique assessment of body evaluations followed by a bespoke programme of simple–yet charged–exercises. With clientele ranging from CEOs to A-list actors and Victoria’s Secret models, Mullins’ honed technique is coveted worldwide. Here he shares his lessons for living a leaner life, from considering how you work out, to what you eat and how much you sleep.

If you happily workout regularly, try and up your training to four times a week

“On numerous occasions, I have seen clients’ fat loss goals hit a plateau when training only three times a week, and when we’ve taken their training frequency to four times a week we have seen significant improvements in fat loss. Four seem to be the magic number, and provided the volume of training is the same, the same results can be achieved with four workouts a week compared to six.”

But if you’re new to exercise, make realistic commitments

“If you’re new to exercise, it’s always best to start with a lower frequency of workouts a week, such as twice a week, and focus on being active on the other days. Over the years I’ve seen a number of individuals sets their training commitments high, then ending up disheartened when they don’t hit their target number of sessions. It’s always better to aim for a realistic number – and then anything above that is a bonus.”

While exercise is important, being lean is nearly all down to diet

“In my humble opinion, your diet is the number one factor that will determine if you reach the goal of being lean. Eating a diet rich in foods that work for you and aren’t inflammatory will help to set up a hormonal environment in the body that promotes fat loss and either muscle gain, or at least preserves the muscle you already have. Eating a diet high in nutrient-dense foods such as vegetables and wild fish, while removing nutrient-robbing processed foods such as those containing refined sugars, will elevate your mood and reduce the stress hormone cortisol - which can lead to increased levels of body fat.”

Don’t cut out the carbs

“One of the biggest mistakes I see is individuals becoming scared of carbohydrates, especially as they’re dropping body fat. The reality is most people eat the wrong types of carbohydrates, eat too many carbohydrates and/or consume most of their carbohydrates at the wrong time of day. Carbohydrates in the form of green vegetables and starchy carbohydrates (that work for you) are super rich in nutrients and fibre, which will help promote fat loss. Personally, I’ve had clients who have had great success in getting lean when they have used the following structure with their carbohydrate intake: At breakfast stick to mainly vegetables as the source of carbohydrates (spinach, asparagus, peppers and tomatoes are my favourites), at lunch, again opt mainly for vegetables and a small amount of starchy carbohydrates, such as carrots, beets or pumpkin, and in the evening introduce a little more carbohydrates in your meal, especially on the days you have exercised. Along with some green vegetables (you will see I recommend everyone aims to consume some type of green vegetable at each meal), my favourites (depending on your genetics and what you tolerate well) include white rice, sweet potatoes and butternut squash. Consuming more of your carbohydrates in the evening will not only help you recover from your workouts but can help you sleep better, in turn aiding recovery further.”

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Don’t cut out fat, either

“People are finally starting to understand that fat isn’t the enemy and that certain fats are essential for health. I’m a big fan of fats from all types of nuts, avocados, free range eggs, butter from grass-fed cows, coconut oil and the fat that’s naturally found in wild fish and meat from cattle that’s been raised on a grass-fed diet. I’ve seen clients do really well when they include some form of healthy fat at each meal, and something I’ve been advocating to clients and using myself over the last few years is adding a form of healthy fat to coffee and tea. Adding teaspoon of either coconut oil or Brain Octane Oil, a type of healthy fat from coconut oil, helps prevent the caffeine crash most people experience if they consume their coffee just black or with fat-free milk.”

Do up your supplements

“If the idea of consuming vegetables at breakfast isn't for you, one tool we use with clients is to get them in the habit of increasing their vegetable intake by using a high standard greens supplement, such as Workshop Essential Greens. A good quality greens supplement is worth the investment, make sure you avoid any products that use cheap filers and bulking agents such as whole grasses, pectin, rice bran and/or flax.”

Try using a foam roller for muscle massage

“Nothing beats a deep tissue massage with a skilled therapist, but the next best option is incorporating a good quality foam roller (such as the ones from Trigger Point Therapy) into your daily routine. Either used pre-workout, post-workout or when you get in from work, self-massage with a foam roller can help increase mobility and improve the health and hydration of soft tissue.”

Sleep and stress management are REALLY important

“Getting lean and staying lean are also dependent on your stress management and sleep quality. Now notice it’s ‘quality’ not ‘quantity’ – six hours of deep unbroken sleep is extremely better than eight-nine hours of broken sleep. Good quality sleep is the easiest, cheapest way to help increase energy naturally, improve your recovery from exercise and to regulate your appetite and sugar cravings. The quantity of sleep is very much an individualised thing, some people perform well on five-six hours of sleep, while others will need seven-nine hours, but the one thing that’s essential between us all is that the sleep needs to be deep and unbroken. If sleep quality is poor, you’re always going to feel as if you’re running on empty, you’ll likely have cravings for sugar and other processed foods to keep you perked-up, and you’ll lack the drive to want to move and stay active.”

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